Vocabulary For this page, you will be invited to contribute words you encounter and discover throughout your readings. I will begin with a review of some important terms in the context of the AP Literature and Composition class as well as throw in some of my favorites:
Explicate: to analyze a piece of literature in order to understand its deeper meaning. This analysis requires the identification of literary elements and rhetorical devices in order to analyze the author's purpose and style in creating his/her purpose. Theme: an author's observation about life. This is traditionally taught as the "moral" of the story; however, when considered in the context of literary analysis, it is more universal and avoids admonishments. For example, in the novel The Outsiders, one of Hinton's themes could be described as: Superficial markers, such as socio-economic class, frequently cause rifts in society. Symbol vs. Metaphor:These two terms are often used interchangeably, but are quite different. A symbol is an object physically present in the plot of the story meant to represent an abstract thought or feeling. A metaphor compares a person, an object, a feeling, etc. to something that is not physically present and on the surface seems to be quite different in order to illustrate the one thing they have in common.
Pathos - root word for feeling
Ethos - root for logic/thought
Apathy - lack of feeling
Ambivalent - being torn in different directions
Complacent - not caring
For this page, you will be invited to contribute words you encounter and discover throughout your readings. I will begin with a review of some important terms in the context of the AP Literature and Composition class as well as throw in some of my favorites:
Explicate: to analyze a piece of literature in order to understand its deeper meaning. This analysis requires the identification of literary elements and rhetorical devices in order to analyze the author's purpose and style in creating his/her purpose.
Theme: an author's observation about life. This is traditionally taught as the "moral" of the story; however, when considered in the context of literary analysis, it is more universal and avoids admonishments. For example, in the novel The Outsiders, one of Hinton's themes could be described as: Superficial markers, such as socio-economic class, frequently cause rifts in society.
Symbol vs. Metaphor: These two terms are often used interchangeably, but are quite different. A symbol is an object physically present in the plot of the story meant to represent an abstract thought or feeling. A metaphor compares a person, an object, a feeling, etc. to something that is not physically present and on the surface seems to be quite different in order to illustrate the one thing they have in common.
Pathos - root word for feeling
Ethos - root for logic/thought
Apathy - lack of feeling
Ambivalent - being torn in different directions
Complacent - not caring